the bazaar by jose andres- LOS ANGELES

the bazaar by jose andres is located in the SLS hotel in beverly hills. way too many people around me have recommended and given praise to this fancy spanish tapas restaurant knowing that i frequent LA. yet, i’ve never had a strong desire to dine here as all the food seemed too innovative for my liking and way over my budget. when i visit the city i enjoy relaxing with the boyfriend and eating at ‘hipster’ restaurants more so then places where we’d have to dress to impress. but i know i know- im missing out on way too much here! which is why my boyfriend and i decided to chose the bazaar for a double date with our friends from out of town. T & E, fashionably late as always, made us wait 40 minutes at the bar which actually made the whole experience much more exciting for us (think claire and phil from modern family on v-day). amongst all the good-looking people, B and i chatted and flirted like old times *blush and had several DELICIOUS and the most original drinks i’ve ever had…

magic “mojito” served in a shaker and strained over cotton candy ($16)i will never forget this. im sure the bartenders are used to girls like me squealing and taking pictures of the ‘magical’ process hehe
pretty garnish ensemblebellini ($16)i was a bit tipsy after this drink and thank god our friends finally arrived. we were starving!philly cheesesteak- air bread, cheddar, wagyu beef ($8/person)
this is something i will be talking about for the rest of my life. it’s like a jack-in-the-box because once you bite into the ‘air bread’ (i had no idea) the melted cheese explodes in your mouth. you can picture the embarrassment when i was caught with cheese dripping all over my mouth and fingers.. ICK. one of the best suprises ive had in my history with food.

cotton candy foie gras ($5/person)
i wasn’t sure what to expect at first but this is one of the most popular item on the menu so we had to order it. the server advised us that the best way to eat this was to have it all in one bite. i was amazed how well the sweet taste of cotton candy complimented the cube of cold foie gras that melted on my tongue. lovely. but one bite and it was gone. this is when i realized that having tapas can be a very thrilling yet disappointing experience since everything in front of you is gone within ten seconds, which leaves me desperate and hungry for more!sauteed shrimp garlic, guindilla pepper ($14)
we each had one shrimp which was clearly was not enough for the 4 of us. tasty but not worth ordering again.not your everyday caprese- cherry tomatoes, liquid mozzarella ($12)
another popular dish but something i wouldn’t order again. the ingredients didn’t taste true to themselves, but the texture and overall concept of the dish is interesting.braised wagyu beef cheeks clementines ($13)
we were craving proteins at this point and we ordered two of these beef cheeks because they were too damn delicious! once you take a bite, the meat pretty much falls apart in your mouth and omg .. you’ll want to eat beef cheeks for the rest of your life. my only complaint was that it wasn’t served hot enough.passion fruit martini/ rum, passion fruit and ginger-laurel syrup, topped with passion fruit ($16)the girls ended the night with another cocktail. this one was way too sweet but the flavor was nice and fruity.

by the end of the night, we had a total of six tapas and a couple of drinks that totaled to around $200USD. we were truly captivated by the chic decor, exquisite food, and friendly service…but we still left hungry! i probably shouldn’t be saying this but we made a mc. donalds run soon after. HOWEVER, my whole experience at the bazaar was extremely fun and unforgettable. i would suggest starting off with drinks at the bar and then getting seated at the table like B & i did. im already looking forward to coming back with the boyfriend to bazaar on my next visit to los angeles!

ABOUT.

currently living in taipei, taiwan. passionate for food and fashion. trendy, upcoming, and hipster finds are my obsessions. always looking to be inspired. addicted to traveling, cats, and eating desserts for breakfast.